Kasaragod: Kanhangad Police on Friday arrested Vellarikundu Deputy Tahsildar A Pavithran for making "a misogynistic remark" and using a casteist slur against the Malayali nurse who died in the Air India crash. He was arrested and booked on a complaint filed by Nair Service Society (NSS), Kanhangad taluk union president Prabhakaran Karichery.

Pavithran's Facebook post against the late Ranjitha Gopakumaran Nair (42), a nurse from Koipuram panchayat in Pathanamthitta district, had triggered massive protests on social media and in Kanhangad and Vellarikundu towns, said Kanhangad DySP Babu Peringeth.

The BJP and Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS), RSS's trade union, took out a protest march to his house at Mavungal. Muslim Women's League (MWL) of the Indian Union Muslim League, took out a protest march demanding his arrest in Kanhangad town.

The Youth Congress held a protest with burning torches in Vellarikundu town. 

Unaware of the protests and anger, Pavithran, a junior superintendent at the Vellarikundu taluk office, reported for duty Friday morning.

Around 11 pm, Vellarikundu Tahsildar V Murali handed him the suspension order issued by Collector Inbasekar K. The Collector also recommended to the government that Pavithran be dismissed from service, citing similar offences in the past.

After getting the suspension order, he was driving back to Mavungal when police intercepted him and took him to Vellarikundu police station because of the threat to his life from protesters. Later, he was handed over to Kanhangad DySP Babu Peringeth.

The DySP said Pavithran has been booked under sections 75 (sexual harassment), 79 (insulting womanhood), 196 (promoting enmity between groups and acts prejudicial to communal harmony) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Section 67A (publishing sexually explicit content online) of the IT Act. 

In the defamatory Facebook post, Pavithran said that Ranjitha died because she took a job abroad, leaving her employment in the government sector.

Ranjitha got a job as a nurse with Kerala's Directorate of Health Service but wanted to honour her job contract in the UK before returning home for good. She got the job in the UK nearly a year ago.

She came home to complete an official procedure regarding her leave application. She took a flight to Ahmedabad from Kochi and boarded the ill-fated Air India flight to London on Thursday.

Kasaragod Collector Inbasekar said he found Pavithran's Facebook post "deeply insulting to womanhood and defamatory", as well as damaging to the reputation of the Revenue Department.

In August 2023, the Additional District Magistrate warned Pavithran after he received a complaint from the president of the Sreemad Paramashiva Vishwakarma Temple at Nellikkad. The temple official alleged that Pavithran was spreading defamatory content through social media.
In February 2024, another strict warning was issued in response to a complaint from V Bhuvanchandran, a leader of the Joint Council of State Service Organisations, the CPI’s government employees’ union.

Bhuvanchandran said Pavithran abused him and his father on social media.

Despite these repeated warnings, Pavithran continued his misconduct, said Inbasekar.

On September 12, 2024, Pavithran lashed out at the Kanhangad MLA in a Facebook post. He wrote: "E Chandrasekaran Nair… He is the worst revenue minister I have seen since I joined the service."

The MLA does not use 'Nair' in his name, though he belongs to the community. He accused the MLA of posting his nephews in key positions in the Joint Council, ignoring members from the Scheduled Caste communities.

Collector Inbasekar initiated disciplinary action against Pavithran and suspended him on September 18, 2024. After the inquiry, a minor punishment in the form of censure was imposed, and he was reinstated in service on November 7, 2024.

Even after multiple warnings and disciplinary actions, Pavithran continued to engage in activities that discredit the Revenue Department and the government, Collector Inbasekar said. In light of his repeated misconduct, the Collector said he recommended to the government on June 13 that Pavithran be dismissed from service.

When contacted, Kanhangad's three-time MLA and CPI leader E Chandrasekharan said his thoughts were with Pavithran’s wife and children, who were going through immense trauma because of his actions. "He should at least think about them before posting such things on social media," he said.

When asked whether Pavithran had suffered oppression from dominant castes, Chandrasekharan dismissed the suggestion. "I have known him for many years -- even before I became an MLA. Neither I nor anyone in the organisation has ever heard of any such thing, he said.

"It's not just his offensive remarks against one particular community (Nair). He has repeatedly used social media to target the Vishwakarma community and others as well. This pattern of vilification is deeply disturbing and unacceptable," he added.